Shepherd joins umpiring's elite

David Shepherd, the former Gloucestershire batsman now best known for his little jigs whenever the total reaches 111, 222 and so on, will be England's representative on the International Cricket Council's new full-time elite panel of umpires.

The former England all-rounder Peter Willey was originally invited but he declined, citing family reasons. The other seven chosen are Steve Bucknor, West Indies; Asoka De Silva, Sri Lanka; Daryl Harper, Australia; Rudi Koertzen, South Africa; Dave Orchard, South Africa; Russell Tiffin, Zimbabwe; and Srinivas Venkataraghavan, India. They will have two-year contracts and two umpires from the panel will stand in all future Test matches, with one member joining a home umpire for one-day internationals.

The first series to be played under the new system will be the triangular tournament in Sharjah starting on April 10 and involving Pakistan, Sri Lanka and New Zealand.

· Mark Lathwell, the former England opener, has left Somerset with two years of his contract to run. He believes that the club are overstaffed and that he would be denied regular championship cricket.

At heart a quiet, darts-playing village boy, arguably lacking a competitive edge, he said last night: "I've found it an increasing strain. Rather than sit out my contract it seemed to make sense to start thinking about a career outside the game."

He is certain to become a target for other counties, however. He fought off injuries and a loss of form to play in 13 championship matches last season. There were eight 50s in his 702 runs as well as glimpses of the kind of forceful batsmanship that earned him two Tests in 1993 and England A appearances in Australia and South Africa. In 1994 he scored a double century against Surrey.

· The Sussex fast bowler James Kirtley has been cleared by the England and Wales Cricket Board after further examination of his action. He became the first England bowler to be reported under the new ICC regulations after doubts surfaced last October in the Test against Zimbabwe in Harare.

"I'm obviously delighted with the decision and look forward to the challenge of First Division cricket with Sussex and concentrate on my performances there," said the 27-year-old. "Hopefully I will again enjoy the honour of representing my country."